Talk:William Bridges Adams

Disambiguation

The numerous William Adamses need a disambiguation page. I hope to get round to this fairly soon. Old Moonraker

Clarification needed

Quote: (William Bridges Adams) "invented the first railway fishplate, in the form of an unbolted wedge between adjoining chairs, in collaboration with Robert Richardson, a junior engineer under Peter Bruff on the Eastern Counties Railway. The two men patented the invention in 1847. Although the design was successful, with sales to the Eastern Counties Railway among others, financial difficulties forced Adams to relinquish the patent. This "wedge" version was soon overtaken by an improved, bolted design by James Samuel of the Eastern Counties Railway. He also supplied an 0-2-0 well tank to the Roman Railway".

Comments (1) James Samuel's fishplate patent was dated 1844, which is earlier than Adams. (2) It can't have been a 0-2-0 well tank because it would fall over. A 2-2-0 or 0-2-2 is more likely. Biscuittin (talk) 14:25, 18 June 2012 (UTC)

Alternatively, it might have been a 0-4-0, but using the continental system of counting axles instead of wheels. Biscuittin (talk) 14:29, 18 June 2012 (UTC)

Birthplace

This article states without obvious citation he was born in Woore (bordering Shropshire parish, then part of parish of Mucklestone, Staffordshire at time of his birth), but his article in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Volume I (2004), page 275, states he was born in Madeley, Staffordshire. Published parish registers do not yet exist for Woore, and I have found no published baptism registers for Madeley covering the birth year. (My research was done in Shropshire Archives, Shrewsbury.)Cloptonson (talk) 12:16, 30 March 2013 (UTC)